Roof structure of automotive vehicle

ABSTRACT

There are provided a front roof, a rear roof, a glass unit including a rear-window glass, a rear roof support link which openably supports the rear roof at a vehicle body, a front-roof support link mechanism which openably supports the front roof, the front-roof support link mechanism being connected to the rear roof support link such that closed states of both the front roof and the rear roof are achieved by means of the rear roof support link and the front-roof support link mechanism, and a glass-unit support link mechanism which is connected to the rear roof support link and configured to support the glass unit in a closed position.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation Application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/459,235 filed on Mar. 15, 2017 which claimsbenefit of priority to Japanese Patent Application No. 2016-054753 filedon Mar. 18, 2016, the entire contents of each are incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a roof structure of an automotivevehicle which comprises a front roof, a rear roof, and a glass unitincluding a rear-window glass.

Conventionally, a structure disclosed in US Patent ApplicationPublication No. 2010/0283286 A1 is known as the above-described roofstructure of the automotive vehicle. That is, this is the roof structureof the automotive vehicle comprising roof members including a front roofand a back roof equipped with a rear roof and a rear-window glass and alink mechanism configured to change a position of the roof membersbetween its use position (a roof closed positon) and its storingposition (a roof open position), wherein the back roof is pivotallyconnected to the front roof and a vehicle-body side member,respectively, so as to serve as a first link of a four-joint link whichcomprises first and second links.

In the conventional structure of the above-described patent document,since the front roof, the rear roof, and the rear-window glass can beclosed concurrently, the rear-window glass does not become unstable, andtherefore there is no problem with the conventional structure inparticular.

Meanwhile, a structure in which the glass unit including the rear-windowglass and the rear roof are liked with each other by a link and thefront roof is connected to the rear roof via a link mechanism may beconsidered. In this case, the glass unit is needed to have asubstantially-fixed state when the front roof is closed. Therefore, ifit does not have the substantially-fixed state when the front roof isclosed, the glass unit may become unstable, so that the front roof maybe unstable because of a load of the glass unit.

Accordingly, in the structure in which the glass unit including therear-window glass and the rear roof are liked with each other by thelink and the front roof is connected to the rear roof via the linkmechanism, it may be difficult that layout flexibility and link-designflexibility are compatibly attained.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a roof structure of anautomotive vehicle comprising the front roof, the rear roof, and theglass unit including the rear-window glass which can easily stabilizerespective closed states of the front and rear roofs and the glass unitand also integrally move the front and rear roofs and the glass unit bymeans of the link and the link mechanism.

The present invention is a roof structure of an automotive vehicle,comprising a front roof, a rear roof, and a glass unit including arear-window glass which are configured to openably cover part of anupward side of a cabin, respectively, a rear roof support link openablysupporting the rear roof at a vehicle body, a front-roof support linkmechanism openably supporting the front roof, the front-roof supportlink mechanism being connected to the rear roof support link such thatclosed states of both the front roof and the rear roof are achieved bymeans of the rear roof support link and the front-roof support linkmechanism, and a glass-unit support link mechanism connected to the rearroof support link and configured to support the glass unit in a closedposition.

According to the present invention, since the closed states of the frontroof and the rear roof are achieved by means of the rear roof supportlink and the front-roof support link mechanism in the structure in whichthe roofs are opened or closed by concurrently moving three members ofthe front roof, the rear roof, and the glass unit, the respective closedstates of the front roof and the rear roof can be stabilized and alsothe three members of the front roof, the rear roof, and the glass unitcan be moved integrally by means of the rear roof support link, thefront-roof support link mechanism, and the glass-unit support linkmechanism.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a deck cover configured toopenably cover part of the upward side of the cabin and having anopening for the glass unit is provided in back of the rear roof, beingspaced apart from the rear roof, the deck cover being openable to anon-interference position where the deck cover has no interference withthe front roof or the rear roof while the front roof or the rear roofare opened or closed, and the glass-unit support link mechanism isconfigured to close the above-described opening of the deck cover withthe glass unit when the front roof and the rear roof are closed and thedeck cover covers the part of the upward side of the cabin.

a deck cover where an opening for the glass unit is formed is providedin back of the rear roof, being spaced apart from the rear roof, thedeck cover being openable to a non-interference position where the deckcover has no interference with the front roof or the rear roof while thefront roof or the rear roof are opened or closed, and the glass-unitsupport link mechanism is configured to close the opening formed at thedeck cover with the glass unit when the front roof and the rear roof areclosed.

According to this embodiment, while the glass unit may be unstable at amoment right before the front roof and the rear roof have been closedbecause the glass unit is spaced rearward apart from a rear portion ofthe rear roof, the above-described opening is closed by the glass unitwhen the front roof and the rear roof are closed, thereby providing thestable state. Accordingly, this embodiment becomes effective, inparticular, in a case where it is necessary that the front roof is movedforward to a position where the front roof is completely closed when ahook provided at a front end of the front roof engages with a latchprovided at a vehicle-body side (see a front header) or the like, forexample.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the front-roof supportlink mechanism comprises an intermediate rotational link, and aconnecting link which connects the intermediate rotational link and theglass-unit support link mechanism is provided, the connecting link beingconfigured such that a component force is applied in a directionsubstantially perpendicular to a rotational direction of theintermediate rotational link.

According to this embodiment, since any undesired rotation of theintermediate rotational link is suppressed by the load of the glass unitwhich is inputted to the intermediate rotational link by way of theglass-unit support link mechanism and the connecting link because of theconnection structure of the connecting link to the intermediaterotational link, the glass unit can be moved by using movement of thefront-roof support link mechanism, suppressing any improper loadinfluence from the glass unit.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the glass-unit supportlink mechanism is supported at an upper-side rear portion of the rearroof support link in a hanging manner.

According to this embodiment, the glass-unit load influence on thefront-roof support link mechanism is so reduced that the opening/closingmovement of the front roof can be stabilized.

Other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following description which refers to theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of an automotive vehicle equipped with a roofstructure of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a lock structure of a roof.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the roof structure of the automotive vehicle,when viewed from an inward side, in a vehicle width direction, of thevehicle.

FIG. 4 is an exploded side view of a major part of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a support structure of a deck cover.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram schematically showing a structure in whichthe roof shown in FIG. 3 is fully closed.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roofhas a medium open position.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roofhas the medium open position.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roofhas the medium open position.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roofhas the medium open position.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roofhas a position right before the roof has been stored.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roofhas a position when the roof has been stored.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the present invention will be described specificallyreferring to the drawings. The drawings show a roof structure of anautomotive vehicle, and FIG. 1 is a side view of an automotive vehiclecomprising the roof structure of the automotive vehicle. In FIG. 1, apair of right-and-left front pillars 1, 1 (herein, the right-side frontpillar is illustrated only in the figures) are provided, and a frontheader 2 which interconnects respective upper end portions of the pairof right-and-left front pillars 1, 1 is provided.

A front-window glass 3 is attached to a portion enclosed by theabove-described pair of right-and-left front pillars 1, 1 and the frontheader 2. A cabin 5 is provided in back of a front pillar 1 to becontinuous to right-and-left door opening portions 4 for passenger'singress/egress (a right-side door opening portion is illustrated only inthe figures), an upward side of the cabin 5 is openably covered with afront roof 6, a rear roof 7, a glass unit 9 including a rear-windowglass 8, and a deck cover 10 including an opening (see a portion denotedby reference character 10 a shown in FIG. 3). Further, a roof storingportion 11 where the front roof 6, the rear roof 7, and the glass unit 9are stored is provided behind the cabin 5 at a vehicle-body side.

FIG. 2 is a side view schematically showing a lock structure of the roof(specifically, the front roof 6) for the front header 2. The frontheader 2 comprises a header outer panel 2 a and a header inner panel 2 bwhich are fixedly joined together and has a header closed-cross section2 c which extends in a vehicle width direction. A downward-recess shapedlatch 12 is attached to a lower portion of the header inner panel 2 b.Further, the front roof 6 comprises a roof upper panel 6 a and a roofinner panel 6 b which are formed integrally through hemming processing,and a lock device unit 13 is attached to a lower portion of the roofinner panel 6 b.

The lock device unit 13 comprises a working gear 15 which engages with agear shaft 14 forwardly/reversely driven by a motor, not illustrated, acrank 17 which is attached to the working gear 15 via a pin 16, aconnecting member 19 which is attached to a front end portion of thecrank 17 via a pin 18, a hook 21 which is connected to the connectingmember 19 via a pin 20, and a guide groove 23 which guides a guide pin22 provided to protrude at the hook 21.

When the front roof 6 is closed, the crank 17 moves forward, the guidepin 22 lowers along the guide groove 23, a front portion of the hook 21is moved downward as shown by an imaginary line (two-dotted broken line)in FIG. 2, and then the crank 17 moves rearward, so that the guide pin22 is elevated along the guide groove 23 and makes a front portion ofthe hook 21 hook the latch 12 as shown by a solid line in FIG. 2.Thereby, the front roof 6 is locked with the front header 2 of avehicle-body side member.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the roof structure of the automotive vehicle,when viewed from an inward side, in the vehicle width direction, of thevehicle, and FIG. 4 is an exploded side view of a major part of FIG. 3.As shown in FIG. 3, a front-roof support bracket 24 (hereafter, referredto as the bracket 24 simply) is attached to a lower portion of the roofinner panel 6 b of the front roof 6. Further, the above-described rearroof 7 comprises a roof upper panel 7 a and a roof inner panel 7 b whichare formed integrally.

The above-described glass unit 9 comprises a front panel 9 a and a rearpanel 9 b which are frame members. As shown in FIG. 3, the rear-windowglass 8 is fixed to a rear face of the rear panel 9 by using an adhesiveagent, and a unit support bracket 25 (hereafter, referred to as thebracket 25 simply) is attached to a center of a front face of the frontpanel 9 a by using an attaching member, such as a clip. Theabove-described deck cover 10 is provided in back of the rear roof 7 andhas an opening 10 a for the glass unit 9. That is, the glass unit 9 isprovided to be spaced rearward apart from a rear portion of the rearroof 7.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a rear roof support link R0 to openablysupport the rear roof 7 at the vehicle body is provided. This rear roofsupport link R0 comprises a link (longitudinal link) R1 (driving link)which extends in a vehicle longitudinal direction and a link (verticallink) R2 which extends in a vehicle vertical direction, which areintegrally connected in a roughly T shape in the vehicle side view. Aworking gear 26 is formed integrally at a lower portion of the rear roofsupport link R0, and a shaft 27 (a driving-link base end shaft) which ispositioned at a lower portion of the vertical link R2 is pivotallysupported at a body side portion 28 of the vehicle-body side member viaa bracket 29. Further, a driving gear 31 is attached to the body sideportion 28 via a gear shaft 30, and the driving gear 31 engages with theworking gear 26. Herein, the driving gear 31 is forwardly/reverselydriven by a motor, not illustrated.

As shown in FIG. 3, the longitudinal link R1 of the rear roof supportlink R0 extends in the vehicle longitudinal direction from a positioncorresponding to the rear roof 7, and an attachment portion 32 isintegrally formed at a portion of the longitudinal link R1 whichcorresponds to the rear roof 7. This attachment portion 32 is attachedto a lower portion of the roof inner panel 7 b by using an attachingmember 33, such as a bolt. A front end portion of the above-describedlongitudinal link R1 is pivotally supported at a front portion of thebracket 24 via a pin 34.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a front-roof support link mechanism F0 toopenably support the front roof 6 is provided. This front-roof supportlink mechanism F0 is connected to the rear roof support link R0.

As shown in FIG. 4, the above-described front-roof support linkmechanism F0 comprises a first link F1 (a first control link) whichextends substantially in the vertical direction, a second link F2 (asecond control link) which is formed in a roughly-triangular shape, anda third link F3 (a front-roof panel control link) which extendssubstantially in the vehicle longitudinal direction.

As shown in FIG. 3, a lower portion of the above-described first link F1is pivotally connected to a body side portion 28 at a position locatedabove and behind the gear shaft 30 via a shaft 35 (base end shaft), andan upper portion of the first link F1 is pivotally connected to a lowerapex of three apexes of the second link F2 via a pin 36.

A rear portion of the third link F3 is pivotally connected to a rearapex of the three apexes of the second link F2 via a pin 37, and a frontportion of the third link F3 is pivotally connected to a rear portion ofthe bracket via a pin 38.

Further, an upper apex which is the rest of the three apexes of thesecond link F2 is pivotally connected to an upper portion of thevertical link R2 via a pin 39 (tip axis). The respective roof closedstates (so-called fully-closed states) of the front roof 6 and the rearroof 7 are maintained by both of the rear roof support ink R0 and thefront-roof support link mechanism F0 as shown in FIG. 3.

Moreover, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, there is provided a glass-unitsupport link mechanism U0 which is connected to the rear roof supportlink R0 and supports the glass unit 9 at a closed position (a positionwhere the opening 10 a is closed). This glass-unit support linkmechanism U0 is configured to close the above-described opening 10 a bythe glass unit 9 when the front roof 6 and the rear roof 7 are closed asshown in FIG. 3.

As shown in FIG. 3, the above-described glass-unit support linkmechanism U0 is supported at a rear portion of the longitudinal link R1of the rear roof support link R0, in other words, at an upper-side rearportion of the rear roof support link R0 in a hanging manner.

That is, the glass-unit support link mechanism U0 comprises, as shown inFIGS. 3 and 4, a front link U1 positioned forward and a rear link U2positioned rearward, and an upper end portion of the front link U1 ispivotally connected to a rear portion of the longitudinal link R1 via apin 40, and a lower end portion of the front link U1 is pivotallyconnected right above the bracket 25 via a pin 41. Further, an upper endportion of the rear link U2 is pivotally connected to a rear portion ofthe longitudinal link R1 via a pin 42, and a lower end portion of therear link U2 is pivotally connected right below the bracket 25 via a pin43. The front link U1, the rear link U2, the pins 40-43, a portion ofthe longitudinal link R1, and apportion of the bracket 25 constitute afour-joint link.

The above-described front-roof support link mechanism F0 comprises thesecond link F2 as an intermediate rotational link, and a connecting linkC1 which connects the second link F2 and the front link U1 of theglass-unit support link mechanism U0 is provided. The connecting link C1is configured such that a component force is applied in a directionsubstantially perpendicular to a rotational direction of the second linkF2 (in a direction which does not rotate the second link F2).

That is, a rear end portion of the connecting link C1 is pivotallyconnected to a central portion, in the vertical direction, of the frontlink U1 via a pin 44 and a front end portion of the connecting link C1is pivotally connected to a portion of the second link F2 which islocated near the pin 36 via a pin 45 such that a downward extensionalline which connects the pins 44, 45 passes through the pin 36 or passesnear the pin 36.

Thus, any undesired rotation of the second link F2 is suppressed by aload of the glass unit 9 which is inputted to the second link F2 by wayof the glass-unit support link mechanism U0 and the connecting link C1because of the connection structure of the connecting link C1 to thesecond link F2, so that the glass unit 9 is moved by using movement ofthe front-roof support link mechanism F0, suppressing any improper loadinfluence from the glass unit 9.

Herein, relationships of the glass-unit support link mechanism U0 andthe glass unit 9 are set as follows. That is, a gravity center of theglass unit 9 is positioned in back of the rear link U2 of the glass-unitsupport link mechanism U0 and the pin 41 is positioned in front of andabove the pin 43 such that a stress derived from the load of the glassunit 9 acts in a direction of drawing the front link U1, therebyreducing a burden to the connecting link C1 and the second link F2 (seeFIG. 3).

<Control of Rear Roof 7>

An opening/closing operation of the rear roof 7 is directly controlledby the rear roof support link R0 where the longitudinal link R1 and thevertical link R2 are formed integrally (see FIGS. 6-12).

<Control of Front Roof 6>

An opening/closing operation of the front roof 6 is controlled by afirst four-joint link, which comprises the shaft 27 (the driving-linkbase end shaft), the pin 39 (front end axis) of the second link F2, thepin 36, and the shaft 35 (base end shaft) of the first link F1 and inwhich the pin 36 is positioned forward relative to a line L1 connectingthe shaft 35 and the pin 39 and the respective shafts 27, 35 are fixedto the vehicle body, and a second four-joint link, which comprises thepin 34 provided at a tip of the longitudinal link R1 and the shaft 27,the pin 38 provided at a tip of the third link F3, and the pin 37provided at a rear end of the second link F2 and in which the pin 38 ispositioned above a line L2 connecting the pins 37, 34.

Specifically, when the longitudinal link R1 leans rearward for storing,the pin 39 approaches the shaft 35 and the pin 36 rotates forwardrelative to the pin 39 in the first four-joint link (see FIG. 7). A pin(shaft) distance is set such that as the pin 36 rotates forward, the pin37 of the second four-joint link rotates forward relative to the pin 39,the pin 34 approaches the pin 37, and the pin 38 rotates upward relativeto the pin 34. Thereby, the front roof 6 moves rearward roughly inparallel and approaches a horizontal position at its closed position(see FIG. 6) and its storing position (see FIG. 12).

<Control of Glass Unit 9>

An opening/closing operation of the glass unit 9 is controlled by theabove-described first four-joint link, a third four-joint link whichcomprises the front link U1 and the rear link U2 (parallel link) whichare supported at the rear portion of the longitudinal link R1, beingspaced apart from each other, and the connecting link C1 which connectsthe front link U1 and the second link F2 which constitute the parallellink. Specifically, as the longitudinal link R1 leans rearward forstoring, the pin 39 approaches the shaft 35 and the pin 36 moves forwardin the first four-joint link (see FIG. 7).

When the pin 36 rotates forward relative to the pin 39, the lateral link(see the links U1, U2) is drawn forward relative to the longitudinallink R1 via the connecting link C1, and the glass unit 9 is drawnslightly forward relative to the longitudinal link R1 like a swing of apendulum and leans forward such that the rear roof 7 covers over theglass unit 9 (see FIG. 9). Then, after the forward move of the pin 45 ofthe connecting link C1 of the second link F2 becomes slow, the rear roof7 and the glass unit 9 integrally swing forward from below around theshaft 27, being turned over (see FIGS. 10, 11 and 12).

The closing operation of the roof is achieved by the reverse directionaldriving to the opening operation. The front roof 6 is stably moved tothe closed positon (see FIG. 6) by means of the first four-joint linkand the second four-joint link, and the glass unit 9 is moved inaccordance with the move of the front roof 6.

That is, even in the storing type of roof structure in which the glassunit 9 is provided separately from the rear roof 7 and configured to beunstable until the glass unit 9 has fully closed the opening 10 a, thepresent structure is configured such that any influence of disturbance,such as swinging of the glass unit 9, on the positioning accuracy forthe front roof 6 is suppressed.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a support structure of the deck cover 10,when viewed from an inward side of the vehicle. As shown in FIG. 5, thedeck cover 10 comprises an upper panel 10 b and a lower panel 10 c whichform together a frame structure, and includes the opening 10 a for theglass unit 9 as described above. Further, the deck cover 10 has adeck-cover support bracket 50 (hereafter, referred to as the bracket 50simply) at its lower portion.

Further, two base end shafts 51, 52 are provided at the body sideportion 28, being spaced apart from each other in the vehiclelongitudinal direction, and links 53, 54 which constitute a parallellink are respectively attached to the base end shafts 51, 52.

A front end portion of the link 53 which is a driving side is pivotallyconnected right below the bracket 50 via a pin 55, and a front endportion of the link 54 which is a driven side is pivotally connected toa lower portion of the center, in the longitudinal direction, of thebracket 50 via a pin 56. The above-described base end shaft 51 isforwardly/reversely driven by a special drive motor for the deck cover10 which is different from the roof-side drive motor.

When the drive motor rotates forwardly, the respective links 53, 54 ofthe parallel link rotates in a rising direction (a clockwise directionin FIG. 5) so as to elevate the deck cover 10 upward and rearward asshown by an imaginary line in FIG. 5 via the bracket 50, so that thedeck cover 10 is opened to a non-interference position where the deckcover 10 has no interference with the front roof 6 or the rear roof 7while the roofs 6, 7 are opened or closed.

FIGS. 6-12 are schematic diagrams schematically showing the roof'spositions from the fully-closed position to the fully-opened position inorder. FIG. 6 is the schematic diagram schematically showing a structurein which the roof shown in FIG. 3 is fully closed, FIG. 7 is theschematic diagram of the roof structure in which the roof has a mediumopen position, FIG. 8 is the schematic diagram of the roof structure inwhich the roof has the medium open position (a roof open angle of 50degrees), FIG. 9 is the schematic diagram of the roof structure in whichthe roof has the medium open position (the roof open angle of 70degrees), FIG. 10 is the schematic diagram of the roof structure inwhich the roof has the medium open position (the roof open angle of 100degrees), FIG. 11 is the schematic diagram of the roof structure inwhich the roof has a position right before the roof has been stored (theroof open angle of 130 degrees), and FIG. 12 is the schematic diagram ofthe roof structure in which the roof has a position when the roof hasbeen stored (the roof open angle of 137 degrees). The above-describednumbers (magnitudes) of the roof open angle are merely examples and theroof open angle is not to be limited to these numbers (magnitudes).Herein, in FIGS. 6-12, a line which connects the shaft 27 and the pin 34is shown by a broken line a, and a line which perpendicularly connectsthe pin 39 and the broken lien a is shown by a broken line 13.

In a case where the front roof 6, the rear roof 7, first, the glass unit9, and the deck cover 10 which are positioned at the roof fully-closedstate shown in FIGS. 3 and 6 are stored in the roof fully-open state(complete storing state) shown in FIG. 12, the deck cover 10 is elevatedto the non-interference position illustrated by the imaginary line inFIG. 5 where the deck cover 10 has no interference with the roofs 6, 7by means of the links 53, 54 as show in FIG. 5.

Next, when the rear roof support link R0 is made to lean rearward fromthe state shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the pin 39 approaches the shaft 35 asdescribed above, the distance between the both 39, 35 is shortened, thepin 37 rotates around the pin 39, and the third link F3 is pushedupward. Thereby, the front roof 6 is moved rearward, suppressing itsrearward leaning compared with the rear roof support link R0 (see FIG.7).

When the rear roof support link R0 is rotated further rearward, thefront roof 6, the rear roof 7, and the glass unit 9 are all stored intothe roof storing portion 11 shown in FIG. 1, passing through the statesshown in FIGS. 8-11 from the state shown in FIG. 7. In this case, therear roof 7 and the glass unit 9 are turned over from the rooffully-closed state (see FIG. 6), but the front roof 6 is not turned overand covers over the rear roof 7 and the glass unit 9 which have beenstored. In the figures, an arrow Fr shows the vehicle forward side, anarrow Re shows the vehicle rearward side, and an arrow UP shows thevehicle upward side.

The roof structure of the automotive vehicle of the above-describedembodiment comprises the front roof 6, the rear roof 7, the glass unit 9including the rear-window glass 8, the rear roof support link R0openably supporting the rear roof 7 at the vehicle body, the front-roofsupport link mechanism F0 openably supporting the front roof 6, thefront-roof support link mechanism F0 being connected to the rear roofsupport link R0 such that the closed states of both the front roof 7 andthe rear roof 7 are achieved by means of the rear roof support link R0and the front-roof support link mechanism F0, and the glass-unit supportlink mechanism U0 connected to the rear roof support link R0 andconfigured to support the glass unit 9 in the closed position (see FIG.3).

According to the present structure, since the closed states of the frontroof 6 and the rear roof 7 are achieved by means of the rear roofsupport link R0 and the front-roof support link mechanism F0 in thestructure in which the roofs are opened or closed by concurrently movingthe three members of the front roof 6, the rear roof 7, and the glassunit 9, the respective closed states of the front roof 6 and the rearroof 7 can be stabilized and also the three members of the front roof 6,the rear roof 7, and the glass unit 9 can be moved integrally by meansof the rear roof support link R0, the front-roof support link mechanismF0 and the glass-unit support link mechanism U0. Further, since theposition of the front roof 6 can be controlled, the opening/closing ofthe front roof 6 can be operated compactly by maintaining its positonhorizontal or by keeping its position which can reduce the windresistance properly.

Further, in the embodiment of the present invention, the deck cover 10configured to openably cover part of the upward side of the cabin 5 andhaving the opening 10 a for the glass unit 9 is further provided in backof the rear roof 7, being spaced apart from the rear roof 7, the deckcover 10 being openable to the non-interference position where the deckcover 10 has no interference with the front roof 6 or the rear roof 7while the front roof 6 or the rear roof 7 are opened or closed, and theglass-unit support link mechanism U0 is configured to close the opening10 a formed at the deck cover 10 by the glass unit 9 when the front roof6 and the rear roof 7 are closed and the deck cover 10 covers the partof the cabin 5 (see FIGS. 3 and 5).

According to this structure, while the glass unit 9 may be unstable at amoment right before the front roof 6 and the rear roof 7 have beenclosed because the glass unit 9 is spaced rearward apart from the rearportion of the rear roof 7, the above-described opening 10 a is closedby the glass unit 9 when the front roof 6 and the rear roof 7 areclosed, thereby providing the properly-stable state. Accordingly, thisstructure becomes effective, in particular, in a case where it isnecessary that the front roof 6 is moved forward to a position where thefront roof 6 is completely closed when the hook 21 provided at the frontend of the front roof 6 engages with the latch 12 provided at thevehicle-body side (see the front header 2 shown in FIG. 2) or the like,for example.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the front-roof support linkmechanism F0 comprises the intermediate rotational link (see the secondlink F2), and the connecting link C1 which connects the intermediaterotational link (the second link F2) and the glass-unit support linkmechanism U0 is provided, the connecting link C1 being configured suchthat a component force is applied in a direction substantiallyperpendicular to the rotational direction of the intermediate rotationallink (the second link F2) (see FIG. 3).

According to this structure, since any undesired rotation of theintermediate rotational link (the second link F2) is suppressed by aload of the glass unit 9 which is inputted to the intermediaterotational link (the second link F2) by way of the glass-unit supportlink mechanism U0 and the connecting link C1 because of the connectionstructure of the connecting link C1 to the intermediate rotational link(the second link F2), the glass unit 9 can be moved by using movement ofthe front-roof support link mechanism F0, suppressing any improper loadinfluence from the glass unit 9. Further, the position adjustmentbetween the roofs can be easily conducted, and the positional accuracyand the sealing performance can be improved.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the glass-unit support linkmechanism U0 is supported at the upper-side rear portion of the rearroof support link R0 in the hanging manner (see FIG. 3).

According to this structure, the load influence of the glass unit 9 onthe front-roof support link mechanism F0 is so reduced that theopening/closing movement of the front roof 6 can be stabilized.

In correspondence of the present invention to the above-describedembodiment, the intermediate rotational link of the present inventioncorresponds to the second link F2 of the embodiment. However, thepresent invention should not be limited to the above-describedembodiment, and any other modifications or improvements may be appliedwithin the scope of a spirit of the present invention. For example,while the longitudinal link R1 and the vertical link R2 are combinedintegrally to constitute the rear roof support link R0 for yieldimprovement in blanking in the above-described embodiment, the rear roofsupport link R0 may be made of a single sheet of material.

What is claimed is:
 1. A roof structure of an automotive vehicle,comprising: a front roof, a rear roof, and a glass unit including arear-window glass which are configured to openably cover part of anupward side of a cabin, respectively; a rear roof support link openablysupporting the rear roof at a vehicle body; a front-roof support linkmechanism openably supporting the front roof, the front-roof supportlink mechanism being connected to the rear roof support link such thatclosed states of both the front roof and the rear roof are achieved bymeans of the rear roof support link and the front-roof support linkmechanism; and a glass-unit support link mechanism connected to the rearroof support link and configured to support the glass unit in a closedposition, wherein said glass-unit support link mechanism is supported atan upper-side rear portion of said rear roof support link in a hangingmanner, wherein said front-roof support link mechanism comprises anintermediate rotational link, said intermediate rotational link and saidglass-unit support link mechanism are connected by a connecting link,and the intermediate rotational link comprises at least three pins. 2.The roof structure of the automotive vehicle of claim 1, wherein theconnecting link is configured such that a component force is applied ina direction substantially perpendicular to a rotational direction ofsaid intermediate rotational link.
 3. The roof structure of theautomotive vehicle of claim 1, wherein the intermediate rotational linkis formed in a roughly-triangular shape.